Force of Nature (4 page)

“Do you think my
dad likes you?”

“I think so.”

“I hope so,” I
said, my voice hazy with fatigue. “Otherwise, he might shoot you when he finds
you in my bed.”

Aiden chuckled
and pulled me close. I could barely keep my eyes open.

“It’s a chance
I’ll take,” he whispered.

* * *

One week had
passed since the horrible tornadoes ripped through our town. In the end, twelve
deaths had been reported and millions of dollars in property destroyed. It was
seven days later, and I still couldn’t watch the news. However, among the
devastation were some definite silver linings.

Rescuers had
worked tirelessly to free victims from the wreckage, and that was how Chloe and
Brandon had been found. Chloe had somehow escaped the storm on campus and had
headed east to Brandon’s apartment just outside the city limits. The storm
followed her, and they had been forced to seek refuge in Brandon’s tiny
bathroom. Both escaped with minor injuries and were released from the hospital
the next day. They had been staying with his parents ever since, which
explained why Chloe had never returned to her dorm. She had tried to call my
cell, but of course, it was buried in the rubble of the library. When landline
service was restored in my neighborhood, the first call I had made was to
Chloe. We’d both cried uncontrollably until both of our boyfriends had to take
our phones away.

That’s another
silver lining.

I have the most
incredible boyfriend in the world.

For six nights,
he had remained by my side. That second day, my mom had returned home. She
loved him immediately and convinced my dad to let Aiden stay with me in my
room. We were adults, after all, and he had more than proven himself to my
parents. He was required to check in with his mom and dad once a day. A phone
call wasn’t enough, so most nights, he had dinner with his folks before
returning to our house. Mom said she understood completely. After a week like
this one, a mother just needed to see her kid with her own eyes to make sure he
was safe and sound.

I’ll understand
someday, she says.

Slowly but
surely, our town was coming back to life. So was I, which was a good thing,
because I was officially head over heels in love.

I think I always
had been, and it had just taken something as monumental as nearly losing our
lives to put things into proper perspective for both of us. We’d wasted a lot
of time, and now that we’d been given a grim reminder that life is far too
short, we decided from that moment on not to waste one single second.

We spent our nights
up in my room. He’d play his guitar, and I’d sing along. Our voices blended in
perfect harmony, which shouldn’t have been surprising at all.

Together, we
were perfect.

Together, we
were complete.

“Are you ready?”
Mom asked as I finished dabbing my lips with strawberry gloss.

I looked at my
reflection in the mirror and smiled softly. The girl in the mirror was not the
same girl from a week ago. This week had forever changed me. Now, I was
thinking about my choices in life and what I wanted to do with the rest of it.
I loved music, and I loved Aiden, but maybe there was more to love. Making
beautiful music was a gift, and I’d always want to do it, but maybe, just
maybe, there was something else I could do . . . something that could really
make a difference in the world.

“I’m ready,” I
said.

Mom smiled
brightly at me before we made our way down the stairs. It was ridiculous how
excited I was about tonight. Despite the fact that we’d made out twice in the
basement that night, Aiden decided that we needed to start over. Slow down. Do
things right.

So tonight was
our first date.

I had no idea
where he was taking me, but that seemed unimportant when I found him waiting at
the bottom of the stairs, looking up at me with his soft blue eyes. He was
wearing a dark navy suit, and I sighed dreamily when his hand slipped into
mine.

I’m pretty sure
my mom sighed, too.

Dad didn’t sigh.
He just stood there, looking all fatherly and stern. But his grin was there,
only to disappear when my mother reminded me that I was a big girl now and had
no curfew.

Aiden and I
smiled all the way to the car.

* * *

“This was some
first date,” I said.

We were sitting
on the patio of the Italian restaurant, feeding each other from the gigantic
banana split the waitress insisted we try. His hand was on my bare knee,
skimming it lightly with his fingers. For two people who were trying to take
things slow, my choosing a skirt to wear was probably not the wisest decision.

“Are you
sufficiently swept off your feet?”

I scooped some
whipped cream onto my finger and placed it against his lips. While giving me a
heated stare that could melt a glacier, Aiden’s mouth wrapped around my finger.

I might have
whimpered.

“I’ve been swept
off my feet for a while now.”

He smiled smugly
and leaned in, kissing me softly. When he pulled away, that intense look from
moments ago was replaced with something soft and sweet.

“You know I love
you, don’t you?”

I did know, but
it was incredible to actually hear the words.

“I love you, too,
Aiden.”

Easy.
Uncomplicated. Perfect.

After dessert,
he drove us to the city park. Ours was one of the prettiest in the state, and I
was grateful to see the storm had spared it. We found a lighted gazebo close to
the water and stepped inside. Aiden sat down on the bench and promptly pulled
me into his lap.

“My skirt makes
this position difficult,” I said, shifting sideways and wrapping my arms around
his neck.

“I like it,
though.”

I grinned when I
felt his hand along my knee once again.

“I’ve noticed.”

He laughed and
kissed the side of my neck.

“I’m thinking
about changing majors,” I said.

“After our talk
in the basement, I thought you might.”

I nodded. “This
week . . . it’s just really put things into perspective for me. We wasted a lot
of time. I wasted a lot of time in school. I want to make better choices, and I
think  . . . I think I want to study meteorology. It’s always fascinated
me, and maybe something I learn or do can make some kind of difference.”

His face
softened. “Baby, that’s amazing, but you can’t control the weather.”

“No, but maybe I
can predict it.”

Living in
Tornado Alley can make you numb to Mother Nature. Many of us had learned a
valuable lesson this week. Not every storm would turn into something as
horrific as this one, but maybe, if I had a better understanding of the
process, I could educate people like me—people who had been around tornadoes
all their lives and had become complacent over the years.

“So you want to
be a weather girl?”

“I want to be a
meteorologist.”

His hand slid up
my thigh. “Well, you’d be perfect. Weather girls are notoriously hot.”

“
Meteorologist
.”

“Meteorologist.”
His eyes danced as his fingers continued their exploration up my thigh. “I
could teach music. You could predict the weather. Together, we’d definitely be
a force of nature.”

Despite our
raging hormones, we managed to remain clothed. It was a public place, after
all. We did kiss—a lot. Most of the night, actually. But Aiden’s continued
desire to do things properly had us back at my parents’ doorstep by midnight.

“I think I
should go back to my parents’ place tonight.”

I linked my arms
around his neck. “I think you’re wrong. I think you should come upstairs with
me.”

Aiden grinned.
“You know, now that we’re officially dating, I’m not sure your dad is going to
continue to allow that.”

“What can he
really say? We’re adults.”

“Yes, but it’s
his house.”

“Such a
gentleman.” I sighed and rose on my tiptoes to kiss him gently.

We kissed goodnight,
and I watched as he walked slowly back to his dad’s SUV. It would be our first
night apart after an entire week together.

I missed him
already.

Was it healthy
to be so connected? To love someone so much?

I had no idea.

After his
taillights disappeared, I sat down on the porch as a soft rain began to fall.
The raindrops landed softly against the sidewalk and gently tapped on the roof.

Sometimes the
weather could be so peaceful.

Sometimes it
could be stormy.

Life was the
same way.

I had no idea what
was in store for me, but I knew I was prepared either way.

I could handle
the calm.

I could handle
the fury.

As long as Aiden
was by my side.

Also
by Sydney Logan

Lessons
Learned

Mistletoe
Magic

Mountain
Charm 

For
a complete list of titles by Sydney Logan, please visit her website at

www.sydneylogan.com

About the Author

Sydney
Logan is an Amazon bestselling author and holds a Master’s degree in Elementary
Education. With the 2012 release of her first novel,
Lessons Learned
,
she made the transition from bookworm to author. Her second novel,
Mountain
Charm
, was released in July 2013. She is also the author of three short
stories: “Mistletoe Magic” and “Force of Nature,” both available exclusively on
Amazon Kindle, and “Stupid Cupid,” which is featured in the Romantic Interludes
compilation.
Sydney has a very unhealthy obsession with music, and her iPod is filled with
everything from Johnny Cash to Eminem. When she isn’t reading or writing, she
enjoys playing piano and relaxing on her front porch at her home in East
Tennessee with her wonderful husband and their very spoiled cat.

Preview of Mountain Charm

“True
love and sweet whispers

Till
death do us part

Send
someone to love my Appalachian heart.”

At the age of thirteen, Angelina
Clark cast an Appalachian love spell, but her father’s death and her mother’s failing
health have shaken her magical faith to its core. Sparks fly when Dylan Thomas
arrives in Maple Ridge to write a story about Appalachian witchcraft. When
Angelina needs him the most, can Dylan prove his love is real—spell or no
spell?

A love story filled with just a
hint of Appalachian magic,
Mountain Charm
will leave you spellbound.

Preview of

Mountain Charm

The crimson sky was aglow along
the horizon of the Smoky Mountains. Standing on the front porch with her dog by
her side, Angelina had to shield her eyes from the brilliant glare as she
stared at the natural beauty of the dawn. To her, it was just another pretty
daybreak, but to her mountain mama, a red sunrise was a sure sign of rain.

I’ll need to remember my
umbrella.

She inhaled deeply, letting the
smell of the pines wash over her. So many times, Angelina had been tempted to
move closer to town. After all, she was twenty-one years old, and none of her
friends still lived at home.

Then again, none of her friends
had a view like this from their front porch.

“Isn’t it pretty, boy?” Angelina
murmured, stroking the dog’s coat. Cash, her faithful chocolate Lab, had been
her constant companion since her tenth birthday. Fiercely protective and
devoted, he always joined Angelina on her morning walks.

It was still early, and the fog
had yet to lift. The sun was trying its best, but mountain mist was stubborn,
and sometimes it was mid-morning before it finally disappeared. Angelina loved
the haze, because it always dissipated, revealing the gorgeous green of spring
and summer, or the pretty mosaic of auburn leaves in the fall. In the winter,
blinding white snow covered the mountaintops and clung to the trees.

All of it was beautiful.

All of it was home.

“Angelina, breakfast is ready,”
her mother called from the kitchen.

Just like that, Angelina’s
peaceful morning was gone. Her mom’s exhausted tone served as a grim reminder
that not everything could be beautiful all the time.

Celia Clark’s voice was always laced
with a determined energy as she tried to remain strong for her daughter, but
Angelina knew better. It had been nearly two years since her mother had buried
the love of her life, and as much as Angelina missed her father, she knew her
mom missed her husband even more.

“Come on, boy,” Angelina said,
tugging the dog’s collar. Squaring her shoulders, she took another lingering
look at the mountains before heading inside. The house smelled of bacon, eggs,
and buttermilk biscuits. Angelina’s stomach growled as she and Cash made their
way into the kitchen.

“Morning, Mom.”

Celia looked up from the frying
pan and offered her daughter a smile. “Good morning, Angelina.”

“How are you feeling today?”

“Oh, it’s a good day. Hungry?”

They took their seats at the table,
and Celia handed her daughter a glass of juice while trying to disguise her
tired smile. Celia Clark might have been the strongest woman Angelina had ever
known, but she was a terrible liar.

“Busy day at the shop?”

Angelina nodded and swallowed her
eggs. “The Massey brothers are dropping off some of their instruments today.
They’ve built some beautiful mandolins and fiddles.”

Celia’s Strings was a little
music store in the foothills of the Smokies. Samuel and Celia Clark had always
loved music and wanted to offer a place for local artists to sell their
instruments. Angelina had worked in the shop since she’d been old enough to
count change.

Celia gazed out the kitchen
window. “We always need more mandolins. They sell so quickly.”

Her breakfast remained untouched,
but Angelina pretended not to notice. Instead, they talked about the store. Her
mother always listened intently, but Celia’s desire to run the shop had died
along with her husband. She’d been ecstatic when Angelina had offered to manage
it herself.

“Happy birthday, Angelina.”

Angelina sighed. She supposed it
had been too much to hope that her mom had forgotten today’s date.

“Twenty-one years old. What a
wonderful year you’re going to have. I only hope . . .”

Celia’s voice trailed off, making
her daughter’s heart ache. Her mom was doing that more and more—talking about
the future and how she might not be around to see it.

Angelina shook her head. “I think
this year is going to be just like all the others. You know I don’t believe in
that old spell.”

Angelina had stopped believing in
Appalachian magic long ago. If wishing made it so, her dad would still be
alive, and her mom’s hair wouldn’t be falling out in the shower each morning.

Angelina Clark was officially a
skeptic.

“You will,” her mother murmured.

It was hard to argue with her.
Despite Celia’s failing health, her visions of the future were as clear as
ever.

After finishing breakfast and
clearing the dishes, Angelina grabbed her bag, and her mom followed her to the
door. It was a half-hour drive into town, and Angelina wanted to beat the city
traffic and do some paperwork before the shop opened at nine. 

Celia handed her daughter an
umbrella. “Red dawn. Rain’s coming.”

“I know.”

“See? You
do
believe.”
Celia’s blue eyes twinkled, and Angelina smiled because it was so good to see
her mom excited about something. Celia reached for her daughter’s blouse and
adjusted the collar that didn’t need adjusting at all. “You look so pretty
today. I’ve always loved this color on you. It brings out the blue in your
eyes.”

All of their female ancestors had
bright blue eyes. It was the one physical trait that never seemed to skip a
generation.

“You have been given such gifts,
Angelina. You should use them. And I wish you could see the spell as a blessing
instead of a curse.”

“But it
is
a curse.”

Her mother laughed lightly,
knowing it was a losing battle. They’d had this same argument for years. She’d
always believed
curse
gave the whole thing a negative connotation. She
preferred
spell
or
enchantment
, while Angelina preferred to
forget she’d ever blown out that silly candle.

“My sweet, pessimistic daughter.
You’ll see.”

Angelina grinned and kissed her
mom’s cheek.

“That’s what you keep telling
me,” she said.

*
* *

Soft bluegrass music flowed from
the speakers, flooding the shop with the sounds of acoustic guitars and gentle
mandolins. Angelina spent the morning hanging the new instruments on the far
wall of the shop. They were well-crafted and beautiful, just as the Massey
brothers had promised.

“Celia’s right, you know,” Maddie
said.

Angelina shook her head and
climbed down from the stepladder, taking a second to admire the craftsmanship
of the newest selection of instruments. Customers flew in from as far away as
California to buy them—a fact that had always made Samuel Clark immensely
proud. Providing musicians with quality instruments was the one family
tradition Angelina was determined to uphold.

Her best friend and business
partner, however, was always reminding Angelina of the traditions she wished to
forget.

They’d been best friends since
elementary school, so Maddie Price knew all about Angelina’s family heritage.
Actually, the entire community knew. For Angelina, it hadn’t been easy growing
up in Maple Ridge when the whole town believed she dabbled in witchcraft. That
was why she’d always been cautious and reserved when it came to using her
gifts.

Sure, she’d had some fun with it
back in school. Back in eighth grade—after catching Christine Williams kissing
Maddie’s boyfriend in the school library—Angelina had pretended to curse
Christy with pimples. It’d been a complete coincidence, of course, when the
girl woke up the next day with her very first zit—right on the tip of her nose.
Celia had grounded her daughter for two weeks, but even at the age of twelve,
Angelina knew the punishment was worth it.

The witchcraft rumors had quieted
down over the years, but some of the older residents still loved to talk about
Abigail Rose, the famous Witch Doctor of Maple Ridge. If the tales were true,
Angelina’s great-great-great grandmother had delivered all the babies in the
county and used mountain medicine to heal everything from snakebites to chicken
pox.

Maddie had always been fascinated
by it all and had spent most of her childhood begging Angelina’s parents to
adopt her.

“You are blessed, Angelina, no
doubt about it,” Maddie told her friend. “You are beautiful and smart. You own
a successful business, and this is the year you’ll finally meet the love of
your life. No more horrible dates with complete losers. It’s the ultimate fairy
tale, and I’m a little disappointed you aren’t sufficiently excited about
this.”

“First of all, beauty is in the
eye of the beholder,” Angelina said as she walked back toward the counter. “If
I
were
beautiful—which I’m not—it would be because of my mother’s genes
and not some crazy curse. If I am successful, it’s because I work my ass off
seven days a week.”

Maddie laughed. “And when your
true love walks through the door? Are you going to tell me it’s some cosmic
coincidence and has nothing to do with that spell?”

“I never should have told you
that story.”

“Oh, I love that story,” Maddie
said, her voice wistful and soft. “It’s so romantic, and yet you refuse to
believe it. Why wouldn’t you
want
to believe it?”

Maddie sighed and twirled a lock
of her curly red hair around her finger. Angelina couldn’t help but think her
best friend, with her ivory skin and bright hazel eyes, was the truly beautiful
one. Freckles dotted her nose, despite her useless attempts over the years to
conceal them with the most expensive make-up on the planet.

“For argument’s sake,” Angelina
said, “let’s say my true love walks through the door any minute now. Why would
I want to be with someone if the only reason they love me is because of some
ancient mountain spell my ancestors conjured centuries ago?”

From her perch on top of the
counter, Maddie looked at her friend with bewildered eyes. “Angelina, I
remember your thirteenth birthday party. We had strawberry cupcakes and danced
to Britney Spears, and all you could talk about was that sacred
candle.   You were so innocent and hopeful and—”

“The word you’re looking for is
naïve
.”

Maddie grinned. “I was so
jealous. That candle was going to give you happiness, beauty, and love, and you
believed it with all your heart. I know your faith in magic has really been
shaken, but
this
is a good thing. You should believe in this.”

Just then, a tall, middle-aged
man walked through the door, gave the girls a nod, and headed straight for the
vintage vinyl. Maddie wiggled her eyebrows, and Angelina stifled a giggle.

“If we have to play this game,
could we at least hope he was born in my decade?” Angelina muttered under her
breath.

Maddie nodded and hopped off the
counter.

“This conversation isn’t over, but
I’m going to run next door and get us some coffee.”

“I’d like a tea instead, and take
an umbrella.”

“Why?” Maddie curiously glanced
out the window.

“Just take it.” Angelina grabbed
her mom’s umbrella from behind the counter and tossed it in her friend’s
direction.

Maddie’s eyes flickered with
understanding. “I bet that was a pretty red sunrise.”